Registering device.



A. R. MUTTON.

REGISTERING DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED ocT. 3. |914.

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ARTHUR R. MUTTON, 0F WATERLOO, IOWA.

REGISTERING DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 11, 1916.

Application filed October 3, 1914. Serial No. 86-",855.

To a?? whom it may con/'ern Be it known that I, ARTHUR R. MUTTON, a citizen of the llnited States of America. and a resident of lVzltelloo. Blackhawk county. Iowa. have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Registering Devices. ot' which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in registering devices. and particularly to those which are used in connection with a meter for measuring quantities ofelectric current, gas or other moving fluids or forces. and the object of my improvement is to provide an apparatus which will at any time desired. furnish the depositary of the meter with a permanent record of the condition thereof, and which will take the place of oflicial inspections and reports thereof. This object I have accomplished bythe mechanism which is hereinafter described and claimed, and which is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a front elevation of my improved registering device as operatively mounted upon a meter, parts of the same being shown broken away. Fig. 2 is a front elevation of said registering device with its covering lid removed. F ig. 3 is a front elevation of the casing of said device. with the mechanism removed therefrom. Fig. 4 is a vertical transverse section of the said device taken on the line a-b of Fig. and looking in the direction ot' the arrow. Fig. 5 is a vertical transverse section of the said device taken on the line c-r of Fig. 2, and looking in the direction of the arrow. Fig. 6 is a plan view of one ot' the record blanks used with. my said device. having thereon permanent records formed by means of the registering mechanism of the device. Fig. 7 is an end ele 'ation of the casing, with the lower shaft and thumb-piece in section.

Similar numerals of reference denote corresponding parts throughout the -several views.-

VMy improved registering device may be employed, without departing from theprinciples of my invention. on any description of meter which has movable indices Inovable upon dial faces.

In Fig. l my registering device is shown mounted over the dial-plate 34 of a meter. said plate having a plurality of dials 26 arranged in a denary series. Instead of the usual hands orindices I have substituted indices 27 formed in the shape of beveled knifeblades, extending radially over the dials from operating shafts 35. These indices vserve the usual purpose for direct readings.

of the asing. The lower part of the lid is turned inwardly and has an interiorlythreaded hole in registration with a like interiorly-threaded hole in the lower wall of the casing, into which a screw 38 may be inserted to secure the lid to the casing. The casing has fixed ears 40 on its lower side provided with interim-ly-tlueaded holes to receive screws 39 which serve to secure the ears and casing to the said meter. To prevent tampering with the mechanism within the casing, the said screws are transversely perforated. and a wire -ll passed through all of them with its meeting ends embedded in a seal 42. The casing 1 is divided into three compartments 2. 3 and 46 by means of vertical partitions 47 and 48, the latter having alined orifices adapted to scat the parallel shafts 4 and 5 which cross the upper and lower parts of the middle compartment 4G. The left-hand endl of the lower shaft 5 extends into the lower part of the compartment 2 and has a crank 6 supplied with a crank-pin 7. A coiled tensionspring 8 is connected betweensaid crank-pin and the upper wall of the casing. The shaft 5 extends across the compartment 3 and passes out through an orificed seat in the casing. A. thumb-piece 11 is mounted rotatably but nonslidably on the outer right-hand end of the shaft 5. but its rocking movement is limited by means of a fixed pin 12 on said shaft extended into an arc-shaped annularly arranged slot 13 .in the thumb-piece. A crank 9 having a crank-pin 10. is fixedly mounted upon the shaft 5 within the compartment 3, as best shown =in said Fig. 5. Upon the right-hand end of the upper shaft 4. within said compartment 3, is fixedly mounted a relatively long crank-arm 14. whose extremity or outer tip .lies Within the pathA of rotary movement of said crankpin 10.

Referring now to said Figs. 2 and 4. the numerals 20 and 21 denote like rectangular plates placed in superposed registration with the plate 20 uppermost. and both plates having like circular openings 28 in registration with each other and with the underlying dials 26, but being of slightly greater diameter than said dials. The plate 29 has a pair of spaced hooked lugs 15 and 17 on its upper v.surface nea-r its lower corners, and whose hooks open upwardly o1' toward the upper shaft 4g, Within the larger middle compartment 46 these plates 20 and 21 are movably seated, and the lower plate 21k rests at top and bottom upona pair of' spaced horizontal plate-springs 29 and 30, whose ends are curved upwardly to support the plate at their ends yieldingly and to space the plate above the fields of action of the indices 27 thereunder. These springs are me dially fixed to the bottom of the casing. A die-member 32 is fixed upon the middle of' the upper spring 29 to extend through an opening in the plate 21 into a counterpart die-part 36 formed in intaglio in the plate 20, whenAv the plates are forced down sufliciently. The die has such numerals or other characters formed therein as may represent or designate the particular meter upon which the particular recording device is mounted. The plates 20 and 21 are made independently movable, so that when not 11nder compression, they may be held apart to keep the card-slot open to receive a card or thin sheet of paper. The card slip or paper being thin to be easily perforated.' it is necessary to have said plates brought 'together to compress the slip between them by the action of the mechanism in pushing `the plates down over the cutting edges of the -indices to perforate a record. =The slip must be tightly held or it might be torn' or displaced while perforating a record thereon.

The nume-ral 24 denotes a solid longitudinally-arranged projection on` the upper side of the casing, and which has a relatively long and narrow slit or passage .5 curved downwardly to prevent the intrusion of an implement or tampering. The passage 25. communicates with the compartment 46 by way of a space between a fixed depending shield 23. and a flange-plate 22 fixed on the upper edge of the movable plate 2l. By these means a record 4card41` maybe introduced into the interspace of the plates 20 and 21 between the openings 28 thereof and overlying the oblong slot 31 in the back wall of the casing.

The numerals 16 and 18 denote like fixed arms on the. shaft 4, located within the compartment 4G over the plate 20, and having their extremities movably engaged under the hooks of the lugs 15 and 17 respectively. of said plate.

The numeral 19 denotes a light spring mounted on the shaft. 4 and which bears upon the left-hand arm 18 and tends to lift said arms to keep the upper plate 20 spaced from the under plate 21. to lpermit of the card 11` being slipped, without impediment, into the interspace of the plates.`

plate 34. and within the encircling openings 28 in the plates 20 and 21, when the card is linserted between said plates.

Operation: 'hen a vrecord card 4l has been properly inserted between the plates 20 and 21, to place the dials 12 thereof' concentric witlr said openings 2S, the device may be used to take a permanentA record on the card. displaying the respective positionsof the indices 2T at the exact moment of actuation. This is effected by rotating the thumb-piece 11 once. The rotation oi' the shaft 5 simultaneously places the spring h under complete tension, and brings the crank pin lllimmediately over the extremity of the crank-arm 14, as indicated in Fig. 2. As the crank-pin T passes its dead-center. the spring 8 suddenly and powerfully reacts. causing the crank-pin 10 to give a quick fillip to the arm 14 in passing it. and the upper shaft 4 is thus suddenly rocked together with its pair of.arms 16 and 1S to press down the plate 20. to also compress the card 41 between it and the plate 21` while bearing down the plate-springs 22) aud S1) sufficiently, so that the knife-edges of' the indices 27 areforced through said card to leave permanent slotted records 13 'thereon showing their relative positions at that instant.

The spring S. having reacted, the other springs 29 and 30 are released to react in turn and move the plates 2() and 21 to their rst positions. removing the card instantly from said indices. 'lt will be observed. that while the device is acting to make the slotted recoids from said indices. that the plates 20 and 21 have moved down upon thel die 32 so that the latter. in conjunction with the counterpart die-face 36, embosses the numeral l1 of this individual meter upon the card. so that the complete record upon the card 11 remains as displayed in'said Fig. 6. which is a record practically ,impossible to be changed.V By reason of' the limited pivotal mounting of the thumb-piece 11 and the arrangement of the arm 1l and coacting cran'kpin 10 in the compartment the device cannot be tampered with, nor reversely actuated by rocking the thuinb-piece and shaft 5 backwaidly.

The ,use of this apparatus will save the expenses of periodical inspection by special officials. and permits the user to take a permanent record at any time.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 7, the casing 1 and closure 33 have integral registering half-sleeves 49 and 5() which are seated about the body of said tliumb-piece 11 to cover the groove 13 therein and extend into the notches in the finger-lugs of' the thumbiece. This means prevents any one tampering with the device by inserting an instrument into the groove 13 to thereby hold the slip-holding plates down with a slip engaged upon said indices to stop the meter action, While permitting the How of current therethrough unregistered.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

l. A device of the character described, comprising the combination with a dial provided with a movable index formed with a knife-edge, of a pair of spaced holdingbodies each independently movable to and from each other above said dial and having registering` like openings over said diall and index, yieldable resilient means for supporting said plates spaced from said dial and index, said' plates being adapted to receive a record-slip in their interspace between their registermg openings, and means for com-l pressing said plates uponfsaid springs to cause the latter to yield and 'permit the knife-edge of said index to penetrate the record-slip.

2. A device of the character described, comprising the combination with a dial provided with a movable index formed with a knife-edge, of spaced like independentlymovable separable holding plates having like `registering openings overlying said dial and index, yieldable resilient supportingmeans for the plate nearest said dial, and means for imparting a sudden illip to vthe uppermost plate to, force both it and the undermost plate toward the dial against the yielding tension Yof said resilient means.

3. A device ofthe character described, comprising the combination with a dial provided With a movable index formed with a knife-edge, of spaced like holding-plates havin like registering openings overlying said ial and index, yleldable resilient .supporting means for the plate nearest said dial, and means for imparting a sudden illip to the uppermost plate to force both it and the undermost plate toward the dial against the yielding tension of said resilient means, consisting of a fixed support, a rotary shaft mounted therein and having a crank, yieldable resilient means connected between said crank and said fixed support, said shafthaving another crank thereon, and movable means between said crank and the uppermost of said plates adapted to suddenly move the plate when the shaft is rotated to first stretch and then release said resilient means connected thereto.

4. A device of the character described` comprising the combination with a dial provided With a movable index formed with a knife-edge, of spaced holding-plates having like registering openings overlying said dial and index, yieldable resilient supportingmeans for the plate nearest said dial, other yieldable resilient supporting-means for the uppermost plate adapted to space it from the undermost plate, and means for imparting a sudden illip to the uppermost plate to force it and the undermost plate against the tension of both resilient means toward the said dial and index.

5. A device of the character described, comprising the combination with a dial provided with a movable index formed with a Y ,plate nearest said dial, a fixed die-member located adjacent to said dial under the lowermost plate, said lowermost plate having an opening overlying said die-member, and the uppermost plate having a counterpart die-member on its face opposite the last-mentioned opening in the lowermost plate and adapted to coactuate with the firstmentioned die-member, when said plates are moved against the tension of said resilient means toward said dial and its index.

6. A device of the character described comprising the combination with a dial provided with a movable index formed with a knife-edge, of a pair of spaced like holdingplates havingr like openings in registration with each other and overlying said dial and its index, spaced yieldable resilient supporting means for the opposite longitudinal edge-parts of the undermost plate adapted to yieldingly force it away from said dial and index, means for yieldingly and resiliently keeping said plates spaced apart from each other, and means for imparting a sud.- den downward movement 'of both plates toward said dial and index against the tension of all said resilient means, comprising spaced shafts mounted over the opposite longitudinal parts of the uppermost plate, the uppermost plate having hook-shaped lugs on its outer face, one of said shafts having like arms whose ends are movably engaged under said lugs, .and having another arm near one end, the other shaft having a crank provided with a pin located in the path of movement of the last-mentioned arm, a fixed support, said last-mentioned shaft having another crank provided with a pin, and a yieldable coiled tensionspring connected between said last-mentioned crank-pin and said fixed support.

7'. A device of the character described, comprising the combination with a dial provided With a movable index formed With a knife-edge, of a pair of spaced like holdingplates having like openingsin registration with each other .and overlying said dial and its index, spaced yieldable resilient supporting-means for the opposite longitudinal (edge-parts of the undermost plate adapted to yieldingly and resiliently keeping said plates spaced apart from each other` and means for imparting a sudden downward movement of both plates toward said dial and index against the tension of all said resilient means, and a casing inclosing said mechanism, said casing having `a curved passageleading to the interspace of said plates adapted to permit the introduction of a record-slip thereinto.

8. A device of the character described, comprising the combination with a dial provided with a movable index formed with a means, a sectional casing for said mechamsm, and means for sea-1mg the sections of said casing together.

9. A device of the character described, comprising a movable index, slip-holding means movably supported above said index, an open-topped casing aboutA said parts, a closure removably secured over the open top -of the casing, a shaft rotatably mounted in said casing vand having one end projecting therefrom, said casing and closure having a bearing for said shaft at their junctionon one side, elements operatively connected between said shaft 'and said slip-holding means adapted'to be actuated to move said means to and from said index, a sleeve mounted for limited rocking movements on the outer end of said shaft, `said sleeve having oppositely-projecting` finger-pieces notched on their sides adjacent to said casing, and said casing and closure having reg istering half-sleeves seated about said other sleeve and extendinginto the notches of said finger-pieces.

Signed at Waterloo, Iowa, this 18th day of Sept. 1914.

ARTHUR R. MUTTON. Witnesses GEO. C. KENNEDY, PEARL STANTON.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of lPatents,

. Washington, D. C. 

